"You! What are you so proud of? You only get attention because of your family name. And even with that, the eldest son of the Fu family still won’t give you the time of day!"
"A good family? Well, that’s just luck—fortunate reincarnation. I must’ve done good deeds in my past life. As for you… if your birth was so unfortunate, maybe it’s karma from all the awful things you did. You should really watch that mouth of yours, or who knows what kind of miserable thing you’ll be in your next life."
Bai Qingqing stepped out just in time to catch this delightful exchange. A soft laugh escaped her lips before she could stop it.
Mo Kexin, standing proud and defiant only a heartbeat ago, visibly flinched at the sound. Her face stiffened, lips twitching, but she said nothing.
The girl across from her, red-faced and heaving with fury, looked on the verge of tears. She stormed off, humiliation biting at her heels.
The air inside Qingxin Hall was laced with soft, tranquil incense. Bai Qingqing strolled over, graceful as a cat. "Care to join me for tea? After a spar like that, your throat must be parched."
Mo Kexin hesitated, lips tightening. Her gaze wavered. “I didn’t say anything that bad. She came looking for trouble. I wasn’t trying to ruin your business.”
Still, she followed Qingqing into the private room without protest. Zidai brought in tea and pastries before quietly withdrawing, leaving the two women alone in an ever-thickening silence.
Bai Qingqing watched her guest’s conflicted expression shift and stir, and couldn’t help but smile. She reached for the teapot and poured a cup. “I’d worried about you, you know. Ran out in such a rush… but now I see I needn’t have. You handled yourself quite well.”
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“You—why would you worry about me?” Mo Kexin said, eyes flashing. “People say things like that all the time. Nothing worth fretting over.”
“Of course I worried. I like you, after all.”
Mo Kexin, so used to speaking her mind without filter, found herself struck speechless. For once, someone else was even more direct than she was.
And Bai Qingqing’s smile didn’t feel like mockery—just warm and open, shining through her eyes, not merely her lips. Mo Kexin opened her mouth to retort, but ended up just sipping her tea. “I’ve never been one to suffer losses.”
Truthfully, she hadn’t come to Qingxin Hall today expecting to see Bai Qingqing. Had she known Qingqing would be here, she might’ve avoided the place altogether.
“It was my fault before. I misunderstood you. Even tried to make trouble for you. I’m here to apologize.”
She spoke plainly, without preamble. And after spending a few minutes Bai Qingqing, her nerves began to settle. After all, this woman already knew exactly what kind of person she was—there was no point pretending otherwise.
They spoke of the Fu family again, and this time Kexin didn’t bother hiding her disdain.
“They claimed to be considering marriage with my family, but before anything was even set, the whole city heard about it. As if we were clinging to them, desperate. I’ve met Fu Xiao—ordinary in looks and bearing both. Nothing like Fu Yi, at least in appearance. That’s why I was so bitter… I didn’t think I was any less than you.”
Mo Kexin’s cheeks flushed with memory. “I even went to flatter the Princess of Ping. Now I want to dig a hole and crawl in. And guess what that charming family did next? You’ll never guess.”
Qingqing raised a brow, amused. “Try me.”
“They came back asking for marriage again—this time, with Fu Yi. That same princess, who wouldn’t give me the time of day before, suddenly turned warm and doting. Asking if I was cold, if I’d eaten, if I’d slept—had me sweating with all her niceties!”
Kexin gave a visible shiver, rubbing her arms. “It was terrifying. So it turns out, unless you’re ‘the chosen one’ for her precious son, you’re nothing—just a weed underfoot. But once she decides you’re worthy, she acts like she’s granting you the moon. If someone else wants to marry into the Ping household, they’re welcome to it. I’m not setting foot in that mess again.”